Egypt Cry Foul After Dramatic World Cup Exit as Hassan Slams ‘Unfair’ Officiating
Egypt’s heartbreaking 3-2 defeat to reigning world champions Argentina in the FIFA World Cup last 16 has been overshadowed by fierce criticism of the match officials, with head coach Hossam Hassan accusing the refereeing team of denying his side a place in the quarter-finals.
The Pharaohs looked set for one of the greatest victories in their football history after opening a two-goal lead against Argentina. Instead, they conceded three goals in the closing stages as the South Americans completed a stunning comeback.
But Egypt insist the result tells only part of the story.
Their biggest grievance came when Mostafa Zico’s second-half goal was ruled out after the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) judged that midfielder Marwan Attia had fouled Lisandro Martínez during the build-up. The decision prevented Egypt from extending their lead before Argentina’s late revival.
Moments before Argentina’s stoppage-time winner, Egypt also appealed for a penalty after Mohamed Salah went to ground inside the box. Play continued without a VAR review, allowing Argentina to launch the attack that ended with Enzo Fernández heading home the winning goal.
An emotional Hassan did not hide his frustration after the final whistle.
“We have been treated unfairly,” he said.
“There have been a lot of things to question both on and off the pitch. We suffered injustice. Perhaps they wanted to keep the world champions in the competition. Perhaps they wanted Messi to remain in the tournament.”
The Egypt coach also questioned why Salah’s penalty appeal was not reviewed while VAR intervened to disallow his team’s second goal.
“We haven’t seen respect or fair play,” Hassan added. “Our goal was ruled out, yet the penalty incident involving Salah wasn’t even checked. We all saw his shirt being pulled.”
The controversy overshadowed what had been one of Egypt’s finest World Cup performances. Defender Yasser Ibrahim gave the Pharaohs the lead, while goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir produced a brilliant penalty save to deny Lionel Messi.
However, Argentina fought back through Cristian Romero, Messi and Fernández to snatch victory and a place in the quarter-finals.
While Argentina celebrated another famous comeback, Egypt left the tournament believing controversial officiating played a decisive role in ending their World Cup dream. The debate surrounding the VAR decisions is now likely to continue long after the final whistle.
